Joining In The Fun!

A few months ago back in February, my dear friend Sara, who I've known since high school, wrote a blog post with this same title. Sara of These Lees is one of the wittiest people I have ever met, and she was one of the first close friends I knew to keep a blog going. In fact, her blog is what inspired me to start Peyt's Island in the first place, so I suppose I owe her a big high five for that (or our firstborn... until they're potty-trained). In addition to having a wildly entertaining, gorgeously styled blog, Sara is also a full-time accountant and has a toddler. How she still has time to write so cleverly is beyond me, but I'm so very glad she does because it makes these 9,000 miles between us almost disappear (almost... sigh).

Anyhoo, I was reading along as I religiously do, and came across the explanation about the blog award Sara was given by another blogger. I was so proud of my friend for receiving a Liebster Blog Award! It was her turn to award her five favorite bloggers, and I happen to be one of them. Can't say I'm surprised. I mean, who wouldn't want to read about rummage sales and mending? Well, it's my turn to award some truly deserving and well written bloggers with a Liebster Blog Award. Here's the gist:

"Liebster is German and means 'dearest' or 'beloved' but it can also mean 'favorite'. The idea of the Liebster award is to bring attention to blogs with less than 200 followers in the hopes that it will bring many new friends/followers. So, in the spirit of good fun I am passing this award on to five other bloggers."

 The Rules are:

1. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.
2. Reveal your five picks for the award and let them know.
3. Post the award on your blog.
4. Bask in the love from the most supportive people on the blogshare- other bloggers.
5. Finally and the best rule of all..........have fun and spread the love!

The hard part is only choosing five. But here goes!

1) The Tofu Fox - My friend who identifies herself as the Tofu Fox just started this hilarious and informative blog about being a military spouse stationed in Japan. Even if you are not a military spouse and are not ever planning to step foot in Japan, this blog will still have you marveling at the unbelievable cultural differences between there and, well, anywhere else you've ever been. She posts often, and her posts are jam-packed with unique content and pretty pictures.


2) Seaweed & Sassafras - Abby is a military spouse who I overlapped with here in Guam. She's now back stateside and her homemade centric cooking blog is simply adorable. Her ideas, her values, her photography, her recipes, and her writing style will all make you wonder if you can be her friend too. Her awareness of buying local produce and her local-produce dinner party were the inspirations for some of my Fresh Factor posts. If you go to no other link on this entire post, go to that one. The pictures look like they are straight out of Martha Stewart Living.


3) Samaritan Blog - I found this blog the most unexpected way. I googled our high school friend's name looking for more information about his tragic death last spring. I came across this gracious and eloquent post, To survive and not to survive at the same time. I have no idea how or if the author knew our friend, but I found her words that day seemed to explain what no one else's could. I have since enjoyed reading her almost daily posts of inspirational quotes, videos and essays all related to her simple but powerful mantra: A case for organized compassion. This is the only blog on the list that I don't personally know the author, but I am so thankful for the nuggets of truth and light she brings to my day.


4) Alakimi - If you want snarky, hilarious and totally random life commentary, check out Kimi's blog, which focuses on "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happy Hour." My only complaint for Kimi, who I have known since I lived in Annapolis eight years ago, is that she doesn't post enough for how funny she is! Maybe that's because someone just had a wedding :) Here's a great example of Kiami's blasts of pure genius ("Does God have an Irish accent? I hope so.").

5) Blah Blah Blonde- My awesome little cousin Erika (not so little anymore) has a fabuloso side career as a Miami fashion blogger. She may have more followers than qualifies for this award, but I wanted to give her a shout out because I am just so impressed with how many doors have opened for her because of her blog. Exhibit A: She was recently featured in the Miami Herald. Exhibit B: She got to go to NYC's Fashion Week as press. Ridic! Way to go little Erika :)

Hands down the hardest part of joining in the fun is leaving out so many of my favorite bloggers (many who didn't make the cut because they have stopped posting... you know who you are!). Check out the people on the right if you're looking for more worthwhile blogs to read. So grateful for this rich way to keep in touch and to be inspired by these compelling friends and writers.

And let me take this opportunity to say THANK YOU to my fellow blogger friends for being my most frequent commenters. Only those who blog know how much it means to have that feedback. Thanks for so loyally filling the white space! It keeps me going...